A printing apparatus, one of image data processing apparatuses, receives image data, with control data used to print the image data, so as to carry out a printing process. Such a printing apparatus can carry out a process in response to a printing request from each of plural users (client terminals) in being provided in a network. However, the printing apparatus cannot carry out a plurality of printing processes at the same time, so that the printing apparatus receives the plural printing requests as reservations and carries out the processes in an order corresponding to an order in which requests are received.
Hereinafter, a processing operation in which the printing apparatus receives image data and control data required in processing the image data and executes the printing process is referred to as “job”. Further, data constituted of the image data received by the printing apparatus and the control data is referred to as “job data”.
However, in case where a single printing apparatus receives a plurality of jobs as reservations, it is difficult to find how many jobs the printing apparatus receives and in what order the printing apparatus is to processes the jobs. Thus, the job requesting side cannot easily find a timing at which the requested job is to be processed.
While, a digital multifunctional device, one of image data processing apparatuses, includes not only a function for printing (copying) document image data scanned by an image scanning device such as a scanner or the like but also various functions such as (i) a function for sending image data scanned by the scanning device to an external receiving end (external device), (ii) a function for, inversely, receiving image data from the external device via a communication line so as to print the image data, and (iii) a function for forwarding the received image data via the communication line.
The jobs which can be processed by the multifunctional device are roughly categorized into a printing job in which image data is printed out and a forwarding job in which image data is forwarded. The job means that a job processing section of the multifunctional device processes scanned image data or received image data. If the job is received from the external device, not only image data but also control data for the job processing section to process the image data are sent.
Further, also the multifunctional device cannot process a plurality of printing jobs at the same time and cannot process a plurality of sending jobs at the same time as in the printing apparatus, so that the multifunctional device receives the jobs as reservations and processes the jobs in an order corresponding to an order in which the job are received.
Thus, also in the multifunctional device, it is difficult to find how many jobs the multifunctional device receives and in what order the multifunctional device processes the jobs, as in the printing apparatus. Thus, the job requesting side cannot find a timing at which the requested job is to be processed.
Incidentally, as to the multifunctional device, there is conventionally proposed such an environment that: there is provided a function for displaying a confirmation image indicative of a list of received jobs, and a user requests for display of the list of the received jobs as necessary so as to cause an operation panel of the multifunctional device to display the list of the reserved jobs.
A specific example of such a technique is an image forming apparatus, disclosed in Patent Document 1, which can change priority of jobs. According to this technique, the user operates buttons on the operation panel so as to cause the operation panel to display a priority changing window indicative of a job in process and jobs on standby. The user can find a status, in which jobs are processed, from the priority changing window.
Further, Patent Document 2 discloses a copying machine equipped with a display area indicative of a status in which reserved jobs displayed in a standby window are executed. According to this technique, it is possible to find the status, in which the reserved jobs are executed, from the standby window.
Further, the applicant previously filed a patent application, and Patent Document 3 which is a publication of the patent application discloses an image forming apparatus arranged so that: a job status window indicative of a list of reserved jobs partially appears behind a basic window which is preferentially displayed, and the partially appearing area briefly displays a list of process statuses of reserved jobs.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 102044/2005 (Tokukai 2005-102044)
Patent Document 2: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 92257/2000 (Tokukai 2000-92257)
Patent Document 3: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 154773/2001 (Tokukai 2001-154773)
However, most of the conventional printing apparatuses do not have display sections for displaying information, and even if a conventional printing apparatus has the display section, the display section merely displays simple information, so that the conventional printing apparatus does not allow for such operation that the user causes the printing apparatus to display the list of reserved jobs as necessary.
The reason is as follows. In case of the printing apparatus, a printing apparatus engine is installed on an image data sending side such as a personal computer (hereinafter, referred to as PC) or the like, so that the printing apparatus itself does not require any input operation carried out through the display section. Note that, in case where the image forming apparatus is installed as the multifunctional device, it is necessary to carry out an input operation through the display section in carrying out a copying operation, but an operation panel having a display section provided on a scanner device is used in this case.
Thus, the applicant conceived such an arrangement that: the function for causing the list of reserved jobs to be displayed as disclosed in the aforementioned Patent Documents 1 to 3 is installed also on the printing apparatus so that the user can find processing statuses of printing jobs having been received and the user can find a timing at which a requested printing job is to be processed.
However, it was found that the installation of the printing apparatus without any modification raises the following problem. That is, Patent Documents 1 and 2 are based on the multifunctional device equipped with not only the printing apparatus function but also the copying function and the facsimile function, so that information displayed in a limited display area is complicate, and it is difficult for the user to understand the content of the operation window. Therefore, this technique is not sufficient in view of such point that the processing statuses of the received jobs are clearly displayed.
Further, according to the arrangements of Patent Document 1 and 2, if the user is confirming detail information (content) of each job with the list of reserved jobs displayed, detail information of a job selected after transition of the display window is displayed. Thus, this may raise some troubles in returning to the original window.
Further, according to the arrangement of Patent Document 3 previously proposed by the applicant, a brief list indicative of contents of processes of jobs is displayed in a partially appearing area of the job status window behind the basic window, so that it is easier to find the processing statuses of the jobs than Patent Document 1 and 2. However, this technique is based on the multifunctional device, so that the technique is not sufficient in view of such a point that the processing statuses of received jobs is clearly displayed.
Further, also as to the multifunctional device, each of the arrangements of Patent Documents 1 to 3 has the following problem or has to be improved as follows.
That is, according to the arrangement of Patent Document 1, the display window transits from the standby window to the job list display window at the time when display of the list of reserved job is requested, so that the user becomes confused.
Further, according to the arrangement of Patent Document 2, the display area indicative of execution statuses of reserved jobs is provided on the standby window so that reception statuses or execution statuses of jobs can be found in the standby window, but the displayed information is complicate, so that the content of the operation window is hard for the user to understand.
Further, according to each of the arrangements of Patent Documents 1 and 2, when the user is confirming detail information (content) of a reserved job received via the operation panel, the display window further transits which causes difficulty in displaying the detail information of the reserved job. In case of obtaining the detail information in this manner, the display window has many windows thereon, so that this results in some troubles as in the case of returning to the original display window.
While, according to the arrangement of Patent Document 3 previously proposed by the applicant, the brief list indicative of contents of processes carried out with respect to reserved jobs is displayed in the partially appearing area of the job status window behind the basic window, so that it is possible to easily find the reception status and the execution status of jobs even in the standby window. However, the standby window is preferentially displayed in the standby window, so that a user who is not familiar with the operation cannot clearly recognize the status. Thus, this technique requires improvement.
Incidentally, the multifunctional device which is one of image forming apparatuses uses a display window for displaying a guidance for the user to confirm an operation status for each mode and an operation panel having an input device used to receive an instruction from the user.
Further, the operation panel is used also to allow the user to recognize an abnormal state in case where any trouble or the like occurs in the apparatus. An example thereof is a technique disclosed in Patent Document 4.
According to the technique, upon detecting an abnormal state of the apparatus, a trouble icon is displayed in the screen of the operation panel so as not to overlap other display key of the displayed basic window so that the user recognizes the abnormal state, and an information window which allows the user to recognize a content of the trouble is preferentially displayed in the center of the screen when the user operates the trouble icon.
Patent Document 4: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 344682/2002 (Tokukai 2002-344682)
However, according to the arrangement of Patent Document 4, the trouble icon is displayed in the basic window. Thus, in case of a user who is not familiar with the operation, he or she may keep on carrying out the job reservation by using keys which remain displayed on the basic window without operating the trouble icon. The machine has been already in trouble, so that the trouble which prevents execution of the job reserved by the user makes it impossible to receive the reservation of the job. Thus, the user who is not familiar with the operation may be confused without finding a reason for which the reservation of the job cannot be executed.